Growler

Phil, Terry's reply was right on the mark. Even identical cameras, same model and manufacturer will look different. I would also recommend a trip to Best Buy or another "hands-on" store, where you can actually pick up and get a feel for the camera. Some of the new smaller camera's have such small buttons & cryptic menu's it may make an impact in your buying decision. Also, make sure you have threads on the lens for filters. Since you will be using this on the water alot of the time (in the sun), a good polarizer filter works like a pair of polarized sunglasses. Iris gets to open up giving you better color saturation. And don't forget a tripod...but I always say that. Lastly, whenever you have the camera on the water, keep it enclosed in a large, heavy duty Ziplock bag, or dry bag when not in use. I really like the hard shell Pelican cases which protect it from other destructive forces also. Namely getting stepped on. Curious what you choose Phil. I work in video production, and would also be happy to show you a couple of pointers sometime. Good Luck G

Terry, We were doing a TV commercial for a gadget to help with cross stitch. We called a local lady we found on the internet to help by acting and/or technical directing. Innocent enough...but...she got all bent out of shape about it. She couldn't lend her likeness or talents for such a project. It was beneath her to even consult on proper form (we knew nothing about cross stitching) and, how dare we even ask her! Wow, all we did was ask. Morale: the name says it all. "Needle" "Point". Protect yourself...wear eye protection. G

I tend to agree with what dwiebenga just said. Might be opening a can-o-worms here, but I think tournament fishing has a lot to do with the mindset of fishermen nowdays. Too many people approach a day of fishing with a tournament attitude. Get there quick, whip the water into a froth, move to the next spot. If someone is there already...make them move...it's MY spot. Years ago I was casually fishing a bank in the James River arm on a day a tournament was taking place. Had a fisherman actually cast over the bow of my boat. I smoked then, and touched the tip of my lit cigarette to his line. While I don't recommend such measures, hopefully he got the message. I know he was mad...he told me. BUT, I reiterate, I don't recommend taking such measures, it made me no better than him. As for crowding into areas already occupied, I just don't enjoy it myself. Be it standing in a group at Taneycomo, or boat fishing on any of the other area lakes. I like fishing alone or with my immediate companions, but don't like gathering in a group just because that's where the action is. I will always remember what my grandfather told me once when I was a kid. I had suggested we move closer to where other people were grouped and catching fish, he simply said, "there's no challenge in that, we can catch the same fish where we're at". My grandfather instilled in me a great respect for the outdoors and the people who enjoy them. And, while others may not, we would always obey all laws and treat others with the utmost courtesy and respect. G

One other thing: I should make the disclaimer that the above advice is just my opinion & experience. Many others may think otherwise, and they are not wrong. You say to-may-to...I say to-mah-to. G

Bill, Glad you got something you are happy with. Taking 170 pics is really what it's all about. Bracketing your exposure and just capturing a ton of images is something the pro's even do. jdmidwest mentioned the polarizer filter. If you are taking outdoor pics, it is something that should be a mainstay on your camera. Works like polarized sunglasses for a fisherman. Better clarity and greater contrast. Also allows you to open up the iris for greater color saturation. Phil, the XL-2 is a much better camera than the GL-2. You can switch the lens and it's got more (and better) manual features. BUT, for my money, if I was buying a mini-dv cam, I'd look into the Panasonic AG-DVX100B. While it is a fixed lens camera, the picture is really nice. One other thing to remember is to get a good quality, fluid head tripod. This is a good time to mention that no matter what tools you have, it's really the person using them that make the difference. Familiarize yourself with your tools and practice. It takes a lot of trial & error to get good. And this takes time away from fishing. Good Luck G

Bill, We deal with this everyday in the video business. First, outside light (sun) and inside light (flourescent or incandescent) are different color temperatures, measured on the kelvin scale. Inside light, or incandescent is average 3,200 degrees k, while outside light averages at 5,600 degrees k. What this means is a camera, especially digital cameras & video cameras, will balance to one or the other. This is what is affecting the color of the outside. Outside light is blue and inside light is orange in color. We use blue gels called CTB's to color correct the inside lights to the sunlight. Or sheets of orange gels (called CTO) over the windows to color correct the sunlight to an incandescent temperature Another issue is the intensity of the light. While the inside lights can be easily measured by the wattage of the bulbs or flash, the outside light depends on the days amount of sunshine. When not shooting sky, we like to have a gray sky to let our iris open up more for better color saturation. When shooting interiors with large windows or sliding doors, we use large sheets of gray colored gels called neural density. This knocks down the intensity of the incoming light. So what would I do in this situation? First, which direction does the window face? This will dictate what time of the day to shoot. Light the interior of the cabin (halogen lights work great for this-but be careful of fire hazard) and shoot your pictures when the sun is in the opposite sky of your view. I.E. if it faces west, shoot in the morning, east view...shoot in the evening. Also use what we call the golden hours to your advantage. This is the first or last hours of light. NOT sunup or sundown, but the actual light peeking up over the horizon. This will give you a flatter, more controllable light source. As you get more or less light, take a picture. Remember, what the camera sees is different from what your eyes see. Take a picture every 7 or 10 minutes as you get more or less light. You should eventually get one that has a pleasing exposure. If you have Adobe Photoshop or other software for color correction, you can always plow the interior with light, and take the picture through the lens of a pair of polarized sunglasses. Then color correct the picture to what you want. This is especially helpful when photographing clouds. Will give you a crisper image (sometimes). Hope this miniature novel helps. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me with a PM. G

I was fishing just down from the old boat ramp yesterday. Did pretty good using Soft Hackles from 1:30-3:00 while the wind was up. As soon as the wind died, so did the bite. Nothing of any size, silver bullets mostly. Did have one brown that went about 16". I love fishing in that gusty, swirly, spring wind!

Eat enough cork and you won't need a float tube.

Gas grill's are convenient (IMHO). You don't have to wait so long for it to heat up, and like jdmidwest said, they are better in winter. My biggest piece of advice is keep it clean. Keep those grates spotless & oil them up before cooking. To add smoke flavor I roll up soaked chips in foil packets, then poke them full of holes. Lay these either directly on the flame, or just put on the grate. I have also had good luck using indirect heat on mine...burners lit on one side, meat on the other, then finish over direct flame. I also do a lot of other cooking over the gas grill. Since I don't like the lingering odor of things like bacon & such, I put an iron skillet on mine for cooking those outdoors. While it may not replace your charcoal burner entirely, it is a tool that you should experiment with, and you may actually learn to like in the future. Good Luck! G

Loon makes a product called Bio Glow. You make an indicator as small or large as you want, and just mold it around your leader. Kind of a foamy, putty-like stuff. Not very durable though...tends to cast off. Best if you get a lot of wind knots (like me) and put it on there. Holds it in place better. G

Bill, you mention "it's cold out there." That's a good statement to remember. I had a friend who fished tournaments tell me to imagine swimming in syrup. That's how they feel with their metabolism rate (fish's) slowed down by the cold temperature. Work your bait so a fish "swimming in syrup" could get it. G

This won't really help with the issue of wrist pain, but for casting stroke and efficiency, I am a huge advocate of using a video camera. Grab a buddy, a vid cam with an LCD screen and go to the back yard or a park. Take turns taping each other, then play back the tape. It's easy to work on flaws in your cast when you can visualize what it actually looks like vs. what it should look like. People can tell us what we're doing wrong, but when we see it for ourselves, it many times makes much more sense. G

Hey Polock, I actually "caught" one of these combo's a number of years ago while fishing. Cleaned up the Zebco with WD-40 and it worked like a charm. Used it for exactly what you are thinking about. Eventually gave it away to someone who needed a rod, and kind of regret it. Good cheap adult version of the "Snoopy" pole to have on hand when you have an extra hour and some water to fish. So, my answer is yes, I literally "snagged" one of them. G

Kind of getting in on this late, but I have to manage my hooks carefully while tying, since I have a cat. Actually, Growler is my cat's name, and she's a great source for gray scud dubbing. Anyway, I always tie in groups of 5, meaning I only set out 5 at a time. I also have an old speaker magnet for finding dropped hooks. Gets them out of the material basket I have under my vise if I drop one in there too. I got hooked in the thumb at around age 6 while setting a trot-line with my grandfather. About dragged me out of the boat, went right through the thumbnail. He had his pocketknife out, cut the line, and used the cut line to remove the hook before I even realized what was happening. My dad is a retired Optometrist, so I can't part without saying "Always wear eye protection...this is the only pair you get." (thanks Dad) Those embedded hooks could do real damage to someones eye. G

One of the coolest people I ran across in radio was a fellow who did Armed Forces radio during WWII. He did the Sunday morning show on one of the stations I worked at. Had a huge collection of Armed Forces jazz records. Remember how the programs used to come on LP's? Dano, the problem is you were "Broiling" them (records). I found all day in the Crock Pot tenderized them enough to eat. I guess CD's would be Neuvo Cuisine.

"Bob Away My Blues" by The Marshall Tucker Band. Another great campfire song. Good all-around fishing song. G

Dano, ahhh, those radio days. $1.98 an hour and all the vinyl you could eat. You have to admit you are more sensitive to improper use of the language, since yours was under a microscope (of sorts) while on the air. G

#3-Dang! He just slimed my coffee. Cast for an hour at Barker Hole this afternoon. No bites, actually just getting some fresh air (I say since I didn't catch anything). New Rogue...$4.98 First Cast...Exhilarating Losing new Rogue on first cast...Stupid! My day was jinxed from the first cast. Anyway, water is way up. Really need a boat to fish proper. I'll have to bribe my nephew since I don't have one. G

Has anyone ever used or seen the flies tied specifically for use as an "indicator" fly? They have a mono loop coming out the back for tying the dropper tippet to. I saw one awhile back, don't remember where, but if you tie your own flies, this would be worth investigating. G

Having spent many years of my past as a radio announcer in different regions, I have actually paid attention to the lazy dialects these regions foster. I believe it is mainly due to laziness, lack of knowledge, social associations and habitual speech patterns. To have proper diction, pronunciation and enunciation, one must be taught the proper way, and practice the proper way to speak and write. This should start at home, with the parents, while the children are young. These days it is considered "cool" to intentionally slur, mis-pronounce or otherwise "butcher" the english language. Early education is the key to combatting such trends. Unfortunately, this takes time and effort. With an increasing number of households consisting of both parents working or a single parent, time is not as readily available as it once was. Still, children should be taught the proper use of words, so they at least know when they are using them wrong. I come from a home where, while growing up, I had a new word to learn each school day. I had to know proper spelling, and use of that word by the end of the day. This exercise has helped me in so many ways, I cannot give enough thanks to my parents for the gift of knowledge. While the public school system could certainly be more challenging, I believe we should all look inward and take more responsibility for our childrens learning. Take a vested interest in our kids. We teach them how to fish & hunt, how to mow the lawn & wash the car. All this time, we can also teach them math skills, word skills & other life lessons. It takes time and effort, but the rewards are priceless. My take G Whew! That wore me out. Now I'm moving to Tips & Tricks to find out how to tie a dropper rig. G

Okay, the music you listen to driving to & from fishing is one thing, the music you listen to while camping is another. Sometimes I like to take the 'ol guitar & just noodle around on it while sitting around a campfire. Once while staying in a campground years ago, late in the evening, some guy at another site would play the harmonica. He'd do 2 or 3 tunes & then quit. I swear, the whole public campground (which is usually pretty noisy) would just stop & listen. This was before cell phones were so ubiquitous in our lives. Now we have the phones ringing all the time. Alices Restaurant is a great campfire song. G

I agree with the cell phone irritation, but they have made it possible for many of us to get away to fish, conducting a little business on the way there & back. Also, in keeping with the spirit of Mikey's original question, I DO listen to music while driving to and from fishing, as I'm sure most of you do. My tastes do stray quite a bit, after spending almost 15 years in radio, I gained an appreciation for many different generes of music. Here goes an attempt at my faves while driving to fish. 1. Almost anything by Pat Metheney (jazz). My favorite album by him is American Garage. Plus, he's originally from Missouri. Just puts me in a good mood. 2. The Daredevils. Admit it, we all catch more fish after hearing their songs. Plus, they're really nice guys. 3. Death Cab for Cutie. My new favorite band. NO, It's not metal. 4. Classical. While not very knowledgable in this genre, I really like some of it. I tend to like less complicated pieces, lightly orchestrated. So, Mikey...what is on your soundtrack? G

I have seen (but never used) some dries with a mono loop out the back for tying your tippet to. These are specifically tied to be used as an indicator fly. I don't think these would be that hard to tie either. G

We like to go north of Grand Rapids & fish for those toothy critters. Always get a few of those big football shaped Largemouths in doing so. Welcome G

I don't use indicators very often, but when I do, I use a yarn one I "tie" myself. I start with a piece of yarn in whatever color you want about 4 inches long. I simply fold it in half and wrap a few turns of thread creating a loop (I leave the loop large enough to slip over a fly). At this point, cut it to whatever length you want it. Using a toothbrush (or whatever), fray the ends. Now thoroughly soak it with floatant & let it dry. You can also use more floatant streamside. I hold it on with rubber bands, the type used for braces. Put the loop through the small rubber band, slip your fly through the loop and cinch down the rubber band. This type is easily removed and also easy to adjust. I don't have any pics, but the concept is simple. I was shown this by a guy on the Blue river in Silverthorne Colorado. The river you can fish while your wife shops at the Factory Merchants Mall within view. G